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The Broke Ass Brigade: The Savage Side of the American Dream
The Broke Ass Brigade is a sarcastic account of the employment of The author Don Romonov in one of the larger retail chains in the world. Don entered the workforce as a young man barely out of High school, full of enthusiasm and Idealism. He was soon to receive an abrupt reality check of what corporate America is all about. Raised in the middle class, Don believed in the value system of working an honest day’s work for an honest wage. That by doing what was “right” and working hard he had no choice but to succeed. The Company Store however had other plans for Don and his coworkers- the American working class. Terrorized by crazy and vindictive bosses Don manages to maintain his sanity and sense of humor while dealing with the masses that frequent the Company Store. Illuminating the day to day interactions of the employees of the Company Store, Don details the devastating effects of poor wages, continued false promises of promotion, threats to employees that call in sick or have life threatening disabilities, and stagnate leadership that make up the culture of the Company Store.
410 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2012
4 people are currently reading
114 people want to read
About the author
Don Romonov
2 books9 followersDon Romonov is the author of Broke Ass Brigade, a book penned from first-hand experience about his life with Asperger’s syndrome. An account of the tough times he has faced trying to fit in, and make a life for himself. He was often looked at as a problem child, and then a misfit adult—often sad, a loner, unable to make friends. His parents sent him to a number of different psychologists, but none of them had the answers. His disability was dismissed as rudeness, laziness, or deliberate misbehavior. Despite being highly intelligent, he was unable to secure and keep the most basic jobs due to his social disabilities. Immersing himself into gaming, whiskey, and old Mercedes, he found a way through this harsh world. Finally, after hitting rock bottom, Don found his way to recovery by giving up prescription cocktails and failed therapeutic measures. He has found medical marijuana to be his way to living a “normal” life. Having found the state assistance he needed to focus on getting better, he now is successfully completing his Master’s Degree (with a 4.0 GPA).
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 24, 2013
I won this book here on GoodReads and couldn't wait to start reading it so I dove right in. I have mixed feelings about this book but will go ahead and review it and make of it what you will, cause I am torn.
Don, the author, is a pretty funny guy but he's also raunchy, crude, mean, is at times uncaring of others feelings and can be a bully. Almost every word out of his mouth is an insult to women, the elderly, obese people, ugliness (teeth and hair) and he also seems to have a big chip on his shoulder. It got annoying at times but then he would turn around and show his heart and empathy in the next paragraph so that was confusing. BUT can we blame him? He works for the COMPANY STORE(and we all know what store that is) so seriously I couldn't blame him for most of his feelings. I feel the same way just having to shop there. We feel we have to shop there, we hate it but for some reason we excuse it for what it is. Don doesn't excuse the COMPANY STORE at all, he lays it all right out there and I have to agree with him. Why do we put up with this company? It has torn too many lives apart to be an acceptable part of our society. Low wages, no concern for it's employees, horrific management and the out and out only concern is for the bottom $. So I have to excuse most of Don's behavior while working for this company, honestly I think he held it together better than I would have.
I was alternately shocked at his behavior and laughing so hard that I cried. He's very descriptive in his writing and the book flows fast. It did tend to get a bit repetitive in places but then it would shoot off in another direction and I knew I was off on a wild ride!
I must say though that this book is in dire need of editing. A good editor. Someone who knows how sentences are supposed to be formatted and how they flow together. I didn't find much misspelling of words, just the way the sentences were put together. If that was done it would elevate this book to what it deserves to be.
Don, I think you're a true comedian and I really enjoyed reading your book. I am hoping you take this as constructive criticism and don't feel I am bashing your book. Cause I'm not bashing at all. I'm glad to have read this book and to get a feel for your writing. Good luck in the future!
Don, the author, is a pretty funny guy but he's also raunchy, crude, mean, is at times uncaring of others feelings and can be a bully. Almost every word out of his mouth is an insult to women, the elderly, obese people, ugliness (teeth and hair) and he also seems to have a big chip on his shoulder. It got annoying at times but then he would turn around and show his heart and empathy in the next paragraph so that was confusing. BUT can we blame him? He works for the COMPANY STORE(and we all know what store that is) so seriously I couldn't blame him for most of his feelings. I feel the same way just having to shop there. We feel we have to shop there, we hate it but for some reason we excuse it for what it is. Don doesn't excuse the COMPANY STORE at all, he lays it all right out there and I have to agree with him. Why do we put up with this company? It has torn too many lives apart to be an acceptable part of our society. Low wages, no concern for it's employees, horrific management and the out and out only concern is for the bottom $. So I have to excuse most of Don's behavior while working for this company, honestly I think he held it together better than I would have.
I was alternately shocked at his behavior and laughing so hard that I cried. He's very descriptive in his writing and the book flows fast. It did tend to get a bit repetitive in places but then it would shoot off in another direction and I knew I was off on a wild ride!
I must say though that this book is in dire need of editing. A good editor. Someone who knows how sentences are supposed to be formatted and how they flow together. I didn't find much misspelling of words, just the way the sentences were put together. If that was done it would elevate this book to what it deserves to be.
Don, I think you're a true comedian and I really enjoyed reading your book. I am hoping you take this as constructive criticism and don't feel I am bashing your book. Cause I'm not bashing at all. I'm glad to have read this book and to get a feel for your writing. Good luck in the future!
December 17, 2012
Welcome to ‘The Broke Ass Brigade’, a novel/diary about life working for the Company Store. This book is very much stream of consciousness and as such, some readers may feel as if the book jumps around a lot yet the subject changes make perfect sense. I laughed out loud at some of the events and had to read then aloud to my spouse (then we were both cracking up!). Through a unique point of view, Mr. Romonov highlights a majority of what is wrong in this country right now. From the slave-driving and incompetent managers, the overworked and underappreciated employees, and the ridiculously sad customers, the author has truly captured what it is to work in one of the largest retail chains in the world. I thought some of my experiences in the retail world were bad, but they doesn’t even compare. ‘The Broke Ass Brigade’ is funny, sad, and touching – a must read! Be warned: there is graphic language and situations which are not appropriate for children. This is definitely an adult-only book.
April 10, 2015
From the very first page, you can’t help but laugh your butt off—it’s that hilarious!
From day one, Don has hated his job at the Company Store. He describes his day-to-day operations with vivid and humorous detail. The reader learns of incidents with customers, managers, and co-workers. “I just found it somewhat unfair that they could slack harder than I and get away with it.” (19) Welcome to the job! It’s all about a man’s struggles, working a dead-end job that he hates. It is an honest and cynical view of the work world.
The anecdotes come from the daily entries of his journal, which actually reads like it. Sometimes the writing was long-winded; the author tended to babble on and on. Why couldn’t he just get to the point? It was a LONG book.
The message: Work sucks! Yeah, like most of us didn’t figure that out already. But did you really need 500 pages to say that?
From day one, Don has hated his job at the Company Store. He describes his day-to-day operations with vivid and humorous detail. The reader learns of incidents with customers, managers, and co-workers. “I just found it somewhat unfair that they could slack harder than I and get away with it.” (19) Welcome to the job! It’s all about a man’s struggles, working a dead-end job that he hates. It is an honest and cynical view of the work world.
The anecdotes come from the daily entries of his journal, which actually reads like it. Sometimes the writing was long-winded; the author tended to babble on and on. Why couldn’t he just get to the point? It was a LONG book.
The message: Work sucks! Yeah, like most of us didn’t figure that out already. But did you really need 500 pages to say that?
January 9, 2015
The actual Broke Ass Brigade in the story has very little to do with the story itself. It is about a young man who is struggling to complete his education, find a good job, have fun with his friends, and preserve his sanity as he works in customer service jobs. It is easy to identify with and understand because it is a well-written true story. Don's sarcastic and dry humor makes it worth the read.
June 27, 2015
Hilarious reading.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews